Page 18 THE VILLADOM TIMES II & IV • January 18, 2012 Critic’s selections of the 10 best films of 2011 by Dennis Seuling There were surprises and disappointments among movies released in 2011. Many big films underperformed despite their high profile and extensive advertising budgets (such as “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”). The top three money makers of the year were popular franchise pictures (“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2,” “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1”). An animated film (“Cars 2”) made it into the top 10 earners. Steven Spielberg had two films in release simultaneously (“The Adventures of Tintin,” “War Horse”). A couple of first-time superhero flicks became breakout hits (“Thor,” “Captain America: The First Avenger”). Ticket sales, though down three percent from 2010, reached an impressive $10.2 billion. Which were the best movies of 2011? Here are this critic’s choices. “The Artist.” This seemingly anachronistic movie hit the bull’s eye. Shot as a silent film in black and white in the old square-shaped aspect ratio and set in the silent period, this film tells the story of an actor (Jean Dujardin) whose career is threatened when sound comes to movies just as newcomer Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo) gets a big break and becomes the toast of Hollywood. There are plot elements of “A Star Is Born” and similarities to “Singin’ in the Rain,” but “The Artist” has a charm all its own. With a great musical soundtrack, “The Artist” shows that a good story, first-rate performances, adroit touches of comedy and pathos, a gimmick that serves the story and doesn’t come off as gimmicky, and a very charismatic dog add up to a hit. “The Descendants.” Director Alexander Payne and George Clooney make this movie a home run. The film concerns a wealthy Hawaiian landowner who must make serious decisions while his wife is hospitalized. All the characters are played so convincingly that they seem real. Matt King (Clooney) plays the land baron/lawyer who, with his relatives, must determine what to do with the family’s landholdings while dealing with rebellious daughter Alexandra (Shailene Woodley) and devastating news about his wife. Supporting players Robert Forster as Matt’s father-inlaw and Beau Bridges as one of Matt’s cousins contribute to a fascinating tale of family dynamics. “The Help.” Taking place in the early ‘60s in Jackson, Mississippi, “The Help” focuses on the lives of black maids who toil in the homes of affluent white families. Underestimating the risks involved, privileged white “Skeeter” Phelan, fresh out of Old Miss, wants to write about what it’s like to work in the kitchens and laundries in the homes of southern white families, but is stonewalled by the women, who fear retribution. Finally, Aibileen (Viola Davis), still trying to overcome a terrible personal loss, agrees to participate, leading many others to come on board. The portrait of the era -- the cusp of the Civil Rights movement -- is portrayed in disturbingly matter-of-fact fashion, whether it be illustrating the wide gap between blacks and whites or underscoring pent-up, longstanding resentments. Olivia Spencer as Aibileen’s friend Minny and Jessica Chastain as a socially ostracized white woman turn in strong supporting performances. Davis is a sure bet for an Academy Award nomination. “The Debt.” This dramatic thriller takes place in two time periods: the 1960s and the 1990s. In the 1960s, three Mossad agents are on assignment to kidnap a Nazi war criminal from East Germany and smuggle him into Israel to stand trial. Thirty years later, viewers see how the earlier adventure impacted the lives of the three. Rachel Singer (Helen Mirren) is the subject of a book about the mission by her journalist daughter, and appears troubled by the renewed attention the book attracts. Old memories are resurrected, and it becomes apparent that the events of the 1960s are not as they had been portrayed for over three decades. The film depicts the young Rachel (Jessica Chastain) and her associates (Sam Worthington and Marton Csokas) planning the kidnapping, and shows how small moments have major Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo in ‘The Artist,’ one of the best films of 2011. consequences. Viewers follow Rachel as she attempts to tie up the loose ends of that long-ago mission. Mirren is outstanding as the guilt-ridden former agent. The movie is a complex look at what constitutes truth and whether it is always the best course. “Midnight in Paris.” Woody Allen directed this elegant tale about infatuation with eras past. Screenwriter Gil (Owen Wilson) is in Paris with his fiancée (Rachel McAdams) and her parents as he sets out to write a serious novel. He is inspired by the Paris of the 1920s, a time when his heroes, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway, attended lavish parties and exchanged witty banter with Gertrude Stein. Late one night, while strolling the streets of the city, partygoers in a taxi invite him to join them. He does, and finds himself transported to 1920s Paris, complete with its colorful literary and political celebrities. Allen’s script is both novel and humorous, and the movie has a bittersweet, nostalgic tone throughout. As in most Allen films, the cast is dead-on perfect. It includes Marion Cotillard, Michael Sheen, Kathy Bates, and Adrien Brody. “Hugo.” Martin Scorsese directed this valentine to early cinema. Young Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) lives in the hidden passages of a Paris train station, tending to its clocks. He has regularly been pilfering mechanical parts from the proprietor of a toy shop and is thus on guard against the station inspector (Sacha Baron Cohen), who is determined to catch him and send him to the local orphanage. It turns out that the old toy maker is Georges Melies, who, years before, practically invented the language of cinema with short films that relied on innovative special effects, the most famous being “A Trip to the Moon.” Scorsese both educates and entertains viewers by showing Melies (Ben Kingsley) in his prime, working with his crew in his glass studio, creating short fantasy films. With the recent glut of 3D movies, it was great to see the technique used beautifully and intelligently. This film includes the best use of 3D since “Avatar.” Cinematography is exceptional, particularly the long, sweeping shots of the train station and tracking shots that follow Hugo as he scurries through his rabbit warren of a home behind the walls of the station. “Moneyball.” A baseball picture only marginally about baseball, it is more about the foresight of one man, Athletic A’s General Manager Billy Beane (Brad Pitt). Recognizing that his team’s finances were no match for richer teams in snagging top talent, he relied instead on statistics to see which players got on base most often and which players were undervalued. Rather than using past performance as the sole determiner of a player’s worth, Beane relied on the calculations of Harvard-educated economist Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) to build his team. Often locking horns with Manager Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman), Beane instituted a new formula, copied later by such teams as the Boston Red Sox. Pitt and Hill have great screen chemistry, and Hill broke out of his dopey sidekick roles by taking on (continued on Crossword page)